Interventional radiology (IR) is a minimally invasive technique that involves the image-guided placement of catheters (long, narrow, flexible tubes) that are threaded through the body, usually through an artery, for the purpose of diagnosing and treating health conditions internally at their source.

Trinity Health’s IR suite features the most advanced technology of its kind – a Digital Subtraction Angiography system that makes it possible to clearly visualize blood vessels in bony or dense soft tissue. It’s the same technology used in a modern cath lab.

Many conditions that once required surgery can be treated less invasively by interventional radiology. It includes treatments for:

• Varicose veins
• Stent placement
• Biopsies
• Cancer treatments
• Dialysis maintenance
• Drainage procedures
• Various kinds of injections
• Thrombolytic therapy (such as infusion of t-PA or other clot-dissolving medication into a blood clot)

As is true of any minimally invasive procedure, IR treatments involve less risk, less pain, and less recovery time.